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Leicester Mercury Blogs RSS feeden-gbFirst Person: Esteban Cambiasso &ndash; He was magic, you knowhttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Person-magic-know/story-27465171-detail/story.html
For one season, the magic was ours.
The signing of
Esteban Cambiasso was inspired, and a coup for our club.
From his goal against Manchester United, to the Great Escape, his contribution to what turned out to be a memorable season will never be forgotten. Some are even calling that season
'legendary', with the man himself also earning that status.
Even if you think that's far-fetched, you cannot deny that he is an immensely talented player, with a fantastic ability to read the...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/27465171/10562660-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: Esteban Cambiasso &ndash; He was magic, you know" title="First Person: Esteban Cambiasso &ndash; He was magic, you know"/></p>Wed, 22 Jul 2015 14:32:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Person-magic-know/story-27465171-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: Esteban Cambiasso &ndash; He was magic, you knowLeicester MercuryFirst Person: 'We must stand as one to help defeat all extremists...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Stand-help-defeat-extremists/story-26892958-detail/story.html
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said: &quot;Whoever sees something evil should change it with his hand. If he cannot, then with his tongue; and if he cannot do even that, then in his heart.&quot;I have spent most of my life working toward the aim of a safer and stronger local and national community for all, where there is mutual respect for everyone and from everyone.I have learnt that if we fail to address questions of identity, faith, citizenship and belonging we can leave a vacuum, which can be...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26892958/10494385-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'We must stand as one to help defeat all extremists..." title="First Person: 'We must stand as one to help defeat all extremists..."/></p>Thu, 16 Jul 2015 08:40:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Stand-help-defeat-extremists/story-26892958-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'We must stand as one to help defeat all extremists...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: Bringing home the horror of Nazi campshttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Bringing-horror-Nazi-camps-home/story-26909306-detail/story.html
Oskar Groening, the 94-year-old known as the Book-keeper of Auschwitz, was found guilty yesterday ofbeing an accessory to the murder of 300,000 Jews.Earlier this year, students Evie Peake and Luke Cummings took a trip to the site of the camp. It lefta lasting impression...There was a silence among us as we first saw the infamous railway lines leading to Auschwitz.Walking through security into the courtyard of Auschwitz I, we caught sight of the notorious gates that read Arbeit Macht Frei,...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26909306/10519466-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: Bringing home the horror of Nazi camps" title="First Person: Bringing home the horror of Nazi camps"/></p>Thu, 16 Jul 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Bringing-horror-Nazi-camps-home/story-26909306-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: Bringing home the horror of Nazi campsLeicester MercuryFirst Person: 'Disgruntled Leicester City fans should keep an...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Person-Leicester-City-fans-open-mind-Claudio/story-26898957-detail/story.html
The post-Pearson purgatory was finally ended yesterday when Leicester City appointed Claudio Ranieri as the club's new boss following a flurry of fleeting favourites in the days prior. Fans had long held out hope for a romantic return by Martin O'Neill or an incredible coup like Jurgen Klopp but eventually we were handed the Italian tinkerman and the reaction has certainly been polarised.I think it's fair to say given his incredibly successful time at the club that fans were very disappointed...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26898957/10499649-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'Disgruntled Leicester City fans should keep an..." title="First Person: 'Disgruntled Leicester City fans should keep an..."/></p>Tue, 14 Jul 2015 12:58:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Person-Leicester-City-fans-open-mind-Claudio/story-26898957-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'Disgruntled Leicester City fans should keep an...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'Extremism flourishes when Muslim communities pass...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Passing-buck-jihadism-wrong-headed/story-26799311-detail/story.html
As the lethal cycle of British involvement in jihadism deepens, so the cries of victimhood grow stronger.The families of recruits to the Islamic State's barbaric regime seem desperate to pin the blame for the crisis on anyone or anything, from supposed negligence by the police to brainwashing through the internet, rather than accept any real accountability.The relatives of the three sisters and their nine children, from Bradford, who have travelled to Syria, complained bitterly the British...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26799311/10402441-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'Extremism flourishes when Muslim communities pass..." title="First Person: 'Extremism flourishes when Muslim communities pass..."/></p>Wed, 01 Jul 2015 11:30:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Passing-buck-jihadism-wrong-headed/story-26799311-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'Extremism flourishes when Muslim communities pass...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: How SlutWalk moved us closer in the race to end...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Inspiration-new-generation-feminists/story-26793090-detail/story.html
In 2011, the world witnessed the global rise of the anti-rape and anti-victim blaming movement called SlutWalk.Although the movement has a controversial name, organisers are determined to point out the movement fights for an uncontroversial message &ndash; to smash rape culture &ndash; or a cultural context in which rape and sexual assault are seen as inevitable, normal, justified and even desirable.Despite the fact feminists have been challenging rape culture since at least the 1970s,...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26793090/10402383-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: How SlutWalk moved us closer in the race to end..." title="First Person: How SlutWalk moved us closer in the race to end..."/></p>Mon, 29 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Inspiration-new-generation-feminists/story-26793090-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: How SlutWalk moved us closer in the race to end...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: Acts of terror generally do not produce the...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/lessons-learned-killings/story-26774397-detail/story.html
The killings in the picaresque South Carolina city of Charleston tell us a number of things. First, that racism is a persistent feature of our social landscape.Many people still accept the specious argument that character attributes are racially determined.Like all bigotries, such beliefs are not amenable to rational argument.Secondly, that even when people of colour (Barack Obama, for example) attain positions of responsibility, old prejudices persist.Thirdly, that easy access to handguns...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26774397/10373409-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: Acts of terror generally do not produce the..." title="First Person: Acts of terror generally do not produce the..."/></p>Sat, 27 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/lessons-learned-killings/story-26774397-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: Acts of terror generally do not produce the...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'The man who can restore Lib Dem fortunes'http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/man-restore-Lib-Dem-fortunes/story-26768408-detail/story.html
While my brand of politics has never been the most embraced in the East Midlands, it is currently an especially difficult time to be a Liberal Democrat in Leicester.After a more devastating annihilation than any of us anticipated in May, two leaders have emerged to relight the whimpering flame of decency in politics.Norman Lamb, the MP for North Norfolk, has ties to our city, having graduated from the University of Leicester, and has an excellent record in mental health. He is a...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26768408/10373556-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'The man who can restore Lib Dem fortunes'" title="First Person: 'The man who can restore Lib Dem fortunes'"/></p>Fri, 26 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/man-restore-Lib-Dem-fortunes/story-26768408-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'The man who can restore Lib Dem fortunes'Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'The head must rule over the heart for young men...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Head-rule-heart-idealism/story-26761099-detail/story.html
The number of British Muslims joining Isis is worrying not just for their own safety and the feelings of their worried relatives, but the security of this country if such radicalised people return to use their newly-found terrorist skills against us.Although their actions certainly cannot in any way be condoned, I can, in part, understand why it happens. Many young people are influenced by idealism, are looking for a cause and how they can make the world a better place. The Middle East...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26761099/10354015-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'The head must rule over the heart for young men..." title="First Person: 'The head must rule over the heart for young men..."/></p>Thu, 25 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Head-rule-heart-idealism/story-26761099-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'The head must rule over the heart for young men...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'Islam is a wonderful religion but British Muslims...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/period-reflection-UK-Muslims/story-26724384-detail/story.html
The month of Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic lunar calendar, is once again with us, during which Muslims all over the world fast from dawn to sunset.In this month, Muslims abstain from food, drink and smoking and participate in a late-night congregational prayer called &quot;taravi&quot; in mosques.The Quran which is the revealed scripture of Islam states: &quot;O you who believe, fasting is decreed for you, as it was decreed for those before you, that you may attain salvation&quot;...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26724384/10311938-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'Islam is a wonderful religion but British Muslims..." title="First Person: 'Islam is a wonderful religion but British Muslims..."/></p>Fri, 19 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/period-reflection-UK-Muslims/story-26724384-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'Islam is a wonderful religion but British Muslims...Leicester MercuryImmigration minister's warning to illegal workers and rogue...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Immigration-minister-s-warning-illegal-workers/story-26699739-detail/story.html
Earlier this month, readers of this paper learnt how 13 immigration offenders were arrested in a dawn raid at a Leicester factory by a specialist Home Office enforcement team. None of these men had the right to work in the UK and none of them should have been employed by a firm in this country. I want to send out a warning to employers in Leicester who think they can cheat the rules and to illegal workers who think they can find jobs they are not entitled to. We will track you down and we will...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26699739/10282757-thumb.jpg" alt="Immigration minister's warning to illegal workers and rogue..." title="Immigration minister's warning to illegal workers and rogue..."/></p>Mon, 15 Jun 2015 11:36:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Immigration-minister-s-warning-illegal-workers/story-26699739-detail/story.htmlImmigration minister's warning to illegal workers and rogue...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: Why the Women's World Cup will boost the game in...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Women-s-World-Cup-boost-game/story-26665432-detail/story.html
Women's football is as old as football itself. But it took until 1991, nearly six decades after the first men's World Cup, for FIFA (formed in 1904) to organise a women's tournament. I am often asked, why did it take so long?Formed in 1863, the Football Association (FA) saw itself as regulating only male players. However, this didn't stop women wanting to play. In 1869, Harper's Bazaar featured a group of fashionably dressed young women kicking a football about. Subtitled &quot;The Girls of the...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26665432/10281684-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: Why the Women's World Cup will boost the game in..." title="First Person: Why the Women's World Cup will boost the game in..."/></p>Mon, 15 Jun 2015 10:38:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Women-s-World-Cup-boost-game/story-26665432-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: Why the Women's World Cup will boost the game in...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'Just to be clear, I've never cried in the lab...'http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Person-Just-clear-ve-cried-lab/story-26699784-detail/story.html
Sir Tim Hunt, Nobel Laureate and Fellow of the Royal Society, has caused controversy this week with his comments on women working in science. He said about women that &quot;three things happen when they are in the lab: you fall in love with them, they fall in love with you and when you criticise them they cry&quot;. He subsequently apologised for his comments and said that they were meant to be ironic. He resigned his honorary position at UCL in London and has resigned from a Royal Society...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26699784/10282932-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'Just to be clear, I've never cried in the lab...'" title="First Person: 'Just to be clear, I've never cried in the lab...'"/></p>Sat, 13 Jun 2015 11:59:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Person-Just-clear-ve-cried-lab/story-26699784-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'Just to be clear, I've never cried in the lab...'Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'We can help you stub out this killer habit'http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/help-stub-killer-habit/story-26681306-detail/story.html
Did you know that more than 900 people in Leicestershire die or develop serious conditions due to smoking? Every year. And that doesn't even include Leicester city numbers.That's why Leicestershire County Council's public health team are determined to help people stop smoking.Since most smokers start before they turn 18 it is important to turn off the tap and reduce the number of young people smoking. The best way to do this locally is through a partnership approach that makes it...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26681306/10282646-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'We can help you stub out this killer habit'" title="First Person: 'We can help you stub out this killer habit'"/></p>Fri, 12 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/help-stub-killer-habit/story-26681306-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'We can help you stub out this killer habit'Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'We need a general strike to fight austerity'http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Mobilising-action-end-Tory-austerity/story-26674704-detail/story.html
It's pay cuts and misery for us... but pay rises and jollies for them? And then our leaders have the gall to repeat the lie that austerity and further public sector cuts are the only way we can save our economy.Yet if they were to collect the evaded and avoided tax from the super rich and big business it would save &pound;120 billion a year, according to the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS).The real impact of cuts is more poverty.Thirty-eight per cent of working-age households claim...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26674704/10281882-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'We need a general strike to fight austerity'" title="First Person: 'We need a general strike to fight austerity'"/></p>Thu, 11 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Mobilising-action-end-Tory-austerity/story-26674704-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'We need a general strike to fight austerity'Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'The Midlands should get fair share of BBC...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/fair-share-BBC-spending/story-26657555-detail/story.html
The Campaign for Regional Broadcasting Midlands was formed in 2013 by a number of people with different backgrounds.We are ordinary licence fee-payers, programme makers, actors, crafts people and others who have a passion for the region or the future of broadcasting in the UK.Many of us have campaigned at various times individually over many years. Whether it was the closure of the Central TV studios in Birmingham and then Nottingham or the BBC closure of its most iconic of studios at...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26657555/10282143-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'The Midlands should get fair share of BBC..." title="First Person: 'The Midlands should get fair share of BBC..."/></p>Tue, 09 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/fair-share-BBC-spending/story-26657555-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'The Midlands should get fair share of BBC...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'It's time to cut the NHS bill for agency nurses'http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/s-time-cut-NHS-agency-nurses/story-26651618-detail/story.html
The Government's promised clampdown on the vast amount of money the NHS spends on agency nurses and doctors to plug staff shortages is welcome but inexplicably overdue.It's welcome because the health service in Leicestershire and beyond simply cannot afford to keep paying over the odds for temporary workers.Let's not forget the agencies profit from every professional they supply. They charge the NHS more than they pay to the nurse or doctor on their books.As a taxpayer and as an NHS nurse, I...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26651618/10282291-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'It's time to cut the NHS bill for agency nurses'" title="First Person: 'It's time to cut the NHS bill for agency nurses'"/></p>Mon, 08 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/s-time-cut-NHS-agency-nurses/story-26651618-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'It's time to cut the NHS bill for agency nurses'Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'No to National Service, yes to volunteering'http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/National-Service-yes-volunteering/story-26643372-detail/story.html
Prince Harry reopened an interesting debate recently on his positive experience in the Army and based on this his call for the re-introduction of National Service.For Harry there is no doubt his service in the Army, including tours in Afghanistan, provided him with a sense of purpose, a chance to be himself away from the eyes of the media and the opportunity to lead soldiers on operations.This experience helped him overcome an obvious difficult period of his life, which explains his...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26643372/10281434-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'No to National Service, yes to volunteering'" title="First Person: 'No to National Service, yes to volunteering'"/></p>Sat, 06 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/National-Service-yes-volunteering/story-26643372-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'No to National Service, yes to volunteering'Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'We must switch the focus from keeping people out...http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/undefined-headline/story-26630360-detail/story.html
One month ago, 28 European leaders held a crisis summit. Why? Because this year to date, more than 1,800 people have drowned in the Mediterranean.That's similar to the mortality rate at the height of the Ebola epidemic in West Africa. Over $5.1 billion of funding was pledged to bring Ebola under control. For this crisis, the annual search and rescue budget is around just 9.5 million euros.The outcome of the summit was shameful and inadequate. Yes, increased funding for search and rescue is...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26630360/10282837-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'We must switch the focus from keeping people out..." title="First Person: 'We must switch the focus from keeping people out..."/></p>Thu, 04 Jun 2015 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/undefined-headline/story-26630360-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'We must switch the focus from keeping people out...Leicester MercuryFirst Person: 'Catcalling is not banter, it's harassment'http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Catcalling-banter-s-harassment/story-26555001-detail/story.html
Catcalling is more frequently in the news than I can remember.Last month, 23-year-old Poppy Smart hit the headlines after reporting a group of builders to the police for sexual harassment. For a month, she dealt with gestures, wolf-whistling and even a builder blocking her path. The debate and negative responses that followed didn't surprise me.The same happened last year, when street harassment charity Hollaback created a hidden camera video of a lone female walking around New York. It...<p><img src="http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276308/Article/images/26555001/10156001-thumb.jpg" alt="First Person: 'Catcalling is not banter, it's harassment'" title="First Person: 'Catcalling is not banter, it's harassment'"/></p>Wed, 27 May 2015 11:00:00 GMThttp://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Catcalling-banter-s-harassment/story-26555001-detail/story.htmlFirst Person: 'Catcalling is not banter, it's harassment'Leicester Mercury